Questioning my NUT......

Ok, sorry if this is winded, but now I am confused, and frustrated. My husband made the comment that it feels like our center has turned from a healthcare facility into a business venture.  Move em in, make the money, move em out.  GRRR!

I went to my 1 year appointment yesterday and saw the nurse and the nutritionist.  The nut is new and I haven't ever seen her.  I explained to her my concern over snacking.  I tend to snack in the evenings, popcorn is my downfall.  But I have been switching on and off to fresh veggies instead. 

Her concern for me was to remove myself from my family and do something for an hour that i like all by myself.  I told her, my family is not a bad influence, it's my head.  She said try it.  OK!  Whatever.  I get to see my family for 3 hours a day together, and now she tells me to remove myself for 1 of those hours.  ok, moving on.

I told her what I eat each day because I'm losing so slowly.  I was honest and gave the things I eat.  She said I was fine.  OK!  I asked how much protein I should be getting in at a year out.  She said that I should be fine with my shake for breakfast and the foods each day.  I asked again, how many GRAMS of PROTEIN should I be getting.  She told me not to worry, I was gettin genough.  OMG!

I asked her about fluid intake and what amount of ounces I should be consuming each day.  On a good day, I can get in 120oz.  If I don't try hard, I can get in 64-80oz.  Again, she said, that's good.  WHICH ONE? 

Now, I know that I am a year out.  But come one, shouldn't a nut be able to answer my questions for me and not just say that I'm doing good.  If i was doing so good, I'd be at goal by now and not struggling to lose 1lb each week.  I told her that my exercise wasn't as good as it should be, but that I was going to join curves with my daughter again w/in the next month, she said, ok, that's good.

Please help.  I started at 318lbs, surgery was 10/4/07, I am now 214lbs.  My goal is 180, but I want to get under 200 first.  What other suggestions can you offer.

Why don't you post what you eat in a day and maybe we can be of some help.

I hate when I can't get a straight answer. I need to have guidelines, I need numbers to shoot for. My protein minimum is 75 g and fluid minimum is 64 oz.

I hear ya, and that is what I was looking for.  Honest numbers as a guideline.  You'd think from a nut you'd be able to get that.

On a normal day:Breakfast: protein shake,

Lunch: anything from a cheese stick, 1/2 a wrap, chicken kabob, tuna fish with wheat thins, cheese slices with wheat thins, turkey/cheese roll-up;

Dinner, anything from chicken, beef, turkey, fish, and i try to add in some veggies, usually broccoli, or beans, sometimes carrots.  i don't get alot of veggies in.

Snack:  popcorn, or veggies, or sugar free popsicles.

My lunches and dinners vary each day, but that's the "usual" choices I pick.

Doesn't sound like you are doing too bad. You seem to be getting good protein at every meal.

The protein guidelines I've read are everywhere between 60-120 g or protein, so why don't you shoot for somewhere in the middle.

Our Nut is vegan, Molly.  She can't answer questions that specific for me either.  I do think she meant that you should do something just for you to spoil yourself, indulge in something you enjoy.  She was new as I started to get ready for surgery.  I do like her. 

I've kind of gone by the seat of my pants at that office.  One of the nurses actually had to get a weight chart out to tell me how much I should weigh.  My doc at that office does not want me snacking, at all.  3 meals a day and no more.

Hi Molly,   I am also a year out, surgery 10/23/06 and down about 108-110 lbs.  I have seriously stalled in the losing department also but don't think it has ANYTHING to do with what I am eating or not doing for exercise.  I think our metabolism's are adjusting to the new size of me.  I'm not going to panic, staying happy and grateful to be where I am.  Don't get caught up in the numbers game.  Weight is just a number.  How do you look?  feel?  State of mind?  I am a grazer and I have to watch myself.  This was an old habit and it is still haunting me.  The WLS didn't change this.  Sometimes I like to go back to basics just to "start over" and give my metabolism a kick start again.  Water and exercise is key for state of mind and cleansing the system.  Also, I recently heard on tv that taking benadryl (i have allergies) sLOWS down the metabolism.  Do you take any allergy medications or Tylenol PM to help you sleep?  These may be affecting the rate at which you are losing.  Someone suggested I change up my diet and get away from the usual routine for a while to shock the body.  Sometimes its not always good to eat the same stuff over and over.  It's kinda difficult to do when you are trying to be low carb, high protein all the time.  We had a nut talk at our last support meeting and she basically went over all the tricks of portion sizes for each item, a fist was a portion of veggies, an inner palm the size of a meat portion, etc.  As long as you are not over indulging, you should be okay.  Try to take some of the focus off of your eating and get MOVING!!  I hope this kinda helps, I am struggling as well so have to follow my own learned advice.  Good luck!!

You have lost over a hundred pounds in a year.  That is fantastic.  Your body needs time to adjust.  I quit losing at 15 months and stayed there for 8 months, then the scale started moving again, slowly but surely.  Just a few suggestions.  The carbs you eat at lunch may be setting you up for cravings later.  If you are goint to eat carbs, eat them at breakfast. Ditch the crackers and wrap, and just eat the protein.  My lunch is usally a crabcake, or 10 shrimp, or deli tureky and cheese roll-up.  I also make a low-fat chili and have about 1/2 cup of that.  On the side I have a half cup of  Fage yogurt( a thick greek yogurt that has twice as much protein as the national brands.)  Wegmans carries Fage int heir Natures Marketplace section.  It is completly unflavored, so I stir in a french vanilla splenda packet and a sprinkle of frozen berries. One other suggestion is to have a small but SOLID breakfast.  It will tell your metabolism that you are up and running.  The shake may not be reving up your system like it should.  I usually have 2 slices of turkey bacon or a poached egg.   I have a "shake" about and hour and half later, Chocolate Matrix mixed with coffee.  Yum!

Heather, thanks for the info.  I am definately willing to change anything at this point.  I know that I am very grateful for losing 100lbs in a year, but I feel like it should be more, so that is where I am struggling.  Again, thanks for the ideas.

I guess my advice would be to eat, maybe, 5-6 times a day. Okay, lemme explain: This is what I do and this is what works for me. If you don't think it sounds like it would work for you, don't try it. I've talked to my nutritionist and my surgeon and they both have differing opinions. Surgeon says that all I need to eat is two or three meals a day. However, the nutritionst is unhappy with that advice. I eat breakfast at about 7 or 7:30, snack at about 10 or 10:30, lunch at 12 or 12:30, snack at 3 or 3:30, dinner at 5 or 5:30 and maybe an evening snack. Meals are protein loaded and snack are focused on protein, but a lot lighter than the meal. Again, this is what works for me. I get between 1200-1700 calories a day and I move A LOT! I don't mean just walking around, moving around the house, I mean consistent, intentional exercise like walking, running, working out at the gym. So, I burn calories, too. I also use www.fitday.com and that helps me out greatly with my intake of food. I would suggest trying that out as well. Hey, good luck. Hopefully, the scale moves for you soon.  Jen Halliday